Tuesday, 21st January, 2014
Fulham will be facing some stiff competition from Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa for Belgium international Steven Defour, though the Cottagers seem to be taking all the right steps.
According to Het Laatste Nieuws, Fulham CEO Alistair Mackintosh met with the FC Porto midfielder's agent Paul Stefani in London yesterday.
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Fulham, who are also joined by Schalke in the transfer race, are proposing a four-and-a-half-year contract for Defour, who is currently tied down at Porto until 2016.
Defour's game time has come down significantly this season – he has made just eight league appearances – and he is keen on moving in a World Cup year.
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The Portuguese club may not be overly eager to see Fulham's offer, but could be coerced into it should Defour persist.
Anderlecht, on the other hand, are always in the running for the title and could offer Defour more chances of being in Belgium's eye.
Stefani had recently confirmed the interest from England, saying: "Aston Villa, it can become real. And there has been interest from a few other clubs in England.
"Anderlecht have been concrete from the beginning. They have always said they absolutely want to have Steven."
Defour has been at Porto since the 2011/12 season – having moved there from Standard Liege – and has made 92 appearances in total for the Portuguese champions.
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